Page 29 of Faded Rhythm

I neither confirm nor deny this.

“My dad and granddaddy were in the army,” she continues.

I power up my laptop.

“And I noticed you made the girls’ beds with hospital corners.”

I lift a shoulder.

She pauses, then adds softly, “But you’re not just a soldier.”

That pricks me a little, but I don’t react. I enter my passwords quickly.

“My grandpa was special forces. He talked like you, very no-nonsense and emotionless. And y’all have similar posture.”

I clear my throat. “I need you to think real hard. About everything. Conversations. Details. Patterns. Arguments. Anything about Brett that felt…off.”

She crosses her arms, her face going hard. “Before I give you more pieces of my soul, can you give me something? One thing. Just one damn detail about you.”

I sigh and scrub a hand down my face. She’s getting on my nerves, and under my skin.

“I don’t talk about my life.”

“You just did,” she snaps. “I guessed and you didn’t deny it.”

I press my lips together, staying silent.

“It’s not fair,” she says, her voice going softer. “You want me to be honest with you while you keep everything locked away. I’m only asking for one thing.Anything.”

My fingers hover over the keyboard as I mentally scroll through every impersonal fact about me. I’m searching for the safest one. The one that costs me the least.

Finally, I mutter, “I don’t have a family.”

It’s silent.

Then her voice cuts through the air, soft but sharp.

“So, what happened?”

I snap my head toward her. “Don’t.”

She recoils slightly but doesn’t back down. “I just—“

“I saiddon’t, Sable. We’re not talking about it. I ain’t gon’ say it again.”

Our eyes meet.

She doesn’t look away like she did earlier this morning. She doesn’t even blink. No retreating. Just fire in her eyes, a challenge she’s determined to win. Her pupils dilate slightly, her lips part just enough, and in the space between us, the air thickens with tension.

Fuck.

I want her.

I want her in a way I haven’t let myself want anything in a long time.

I’m the first one to break, but my eyes don’t go far. I let my gaze drop to her mouth, full and soft. I wonder how Brett treated those lips. If he kissed her like he meant it. And then I wonder how the fuck he could live in the same house as this woman and not wake up every morning starving for her.

Like I did.

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